Microplastics in clouds cause 'plastic rainfall', infect everything
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According to a new study, clouds now include microscopic bits of plastic, which are generating "plastic rainfall".
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A man holds an umbrella as he wades through a flooded street after heavy monsoon rains in Chennai, India, on November 8, 2021 (AFP)
According to a new study, clouds now include microscopic bits of plastic, which are generating "plastic rainfall".
Days ago, AFP reported that the UN's environment chief warned against relying solely on recycling and called for a fundamental reconsideration of plastic use, as plastic production surges globally and is leading to increased pollution.
Scientists are concerned that tiny particles, smaller than 5 mm, known as microplastics, would contaminate "nearly everything we eat and drink."
Microplastics are a byproduct of the plastic waste that has choked our lands and oceans as plastic degrades into smaller fragments and makes its way into the environment, human bodies, and wildlife.
Previous studies have connected these particles to illnesses and ailments such as cancer, infertility, and hormone disturbances.
Waseda University in Japan is the first to identify airborne microplastics in cloud water, as they conducted the first study to examine how microplastics affect cloud formation and their potential impact on the climate crisis and human health.
Read next: Microplastics everywhere; in oceans, air, and humans
'Plastic air pollution' could cause irreversible harm
According to co-author Hiroshi Okochi, "If the issue of ‘plastic air pollution’ is not addressed proactively, climate change and ecological risks may become a reality, causing irreversible and serious environmental damage in the future."
Researchers examined cloud water collected at elevations ranging from 1,300 to 3,776 meters from the peak of Mount Fuji, the southeastern slopes of Mt Fuji (Tarobo), and the summit of Mt Oyama in Japan.
The existence of airborne microplastics (AMP) in cloud water was determined using sophisticated imaging methods, and their physical and chemical characteristics were investigated.
In these airborne particles, the researchers discovered nine different forms of polymers and one type of rubber.
According to the researchers, the data indicated that airborne microplastics in cloud water originated predominantly from the ocean.
Read more: Plastic to outnumber fish in ocean by 2050: Russian Deputy PM
"This implies that microplastics may have become an essential component of clouds, contaminating nearly everything we eat and drink via ‘plastic rainfall’," the researchers remarked.
They warned of a "severe loss of biodiversity," if microplastics accumulated at the poles and changed the ecological balance of the planet.
"[Airborne microplastics] are degraded much faster in the upper atmosphere than on the ground due to strong ultraviolet radiation, and this degradation releases greenhouse gases and contributes to global warming," Okochi remarked, adding that the findings could be used to "account for the effects of [microplastics] in future global warming projections."
Read next: Microplastics found in fresh Antarctic snow
